[pct-l] Vacuum sealer info and an urgent request

[Jennifer Zimmerman]

Hello, PCT community!  I'm a long-time lurker and a first time poster.  I
wanted to thank the folks that monitor this list and share
their experiences - you've provided me with many hours of escape when I'm
not able to get out and hike. My husband and I have dreamed of thru-hiking
for years now and are committed to doing it next year before the trail gets
any more crowded.

I hope this isn't too out of line or off-topic, but I have no idea where
else to turn for assistance at this point.  We have a permit to hike the
Wonderland trail around Rainier next week and our plans for transportation
to the park have just fallen apart.  Does anyone know of any Seattle-area
trail angels or outdoors-loving people who might be willing to drive us?
We were hoping to get a ride out on the morning of this Saturday, 8/18, in
order to pick up our permit before starting the hike on Sunday.  Our entry
point is the Mowich Lake campground with a quick stopover at the Carbon
River RS to get the permit. This is about 2 hours (maybe less) from
Seattle. It would be our pleasure to pay for gas, park pass, and any other
incidentals if you'd like to spend the day hiking for free.  You would save
us a huge amount of anxiety and money since our only other option is taking
a cab from Enumclaw, which is itself a long bus ride from SeaTac.

More on-topic - does anyone have experience with vacuum-sealing meals? When
I have the luxury (because it's definitely not a time-saver) I like to
dehydrate our food at home.  We tend to carry less weight this way and I
have more of an appetite for our own meals than for Kraft Dinner or Lipton
noodles.  After doing some research earlier this summer I bought a sealer
under the brand name Sinbo.  The big appeal of this model was that the bags
are not proprietary and therefore much cheaper than those for the
Foodsaver-type sealers.  However, my googling skills weren't enough to
uncover many reviews or quality/seal integrity info.  Has anyone had
first-hand experience with this machine?  I used it extensively in
preparing our Wonderland food drops and have been happy with it so far, but
I'm curious to know more.  The only issue I encountered was some pinhole
punctures and loss of vacuum on some of our more "prickly" meals and this
was easily solved by double-bagging. I always follow the food threads with
great interest so I'd love to hear tips about dehydrating/packing your own
food in general.  Thanks in advance!